By your side in the Middle of Nowhere
by Uncle.Dragon
Summary: A simple tale of how a boy falls in love comforting a girl.


Toori Aoi stood outside the door to Horizon Ariadust's room.

It was quiet in the large mansion that afternoon, which the self-proclaimed delinquent wasn't used to. Normally whenever he came over to his friend's house in Mikawa, he would immediately hear about some new recipe that his wealthy friend had tried today, or be scolded by one of her many tutors about homework, or the couple getting into a verbal argument over what they should do (with Horizon winning everything, normally by intimidating her friend with her wits).

But it was different today.

Earlier, there had been yelling. Not from either of the kids, but from a teacher, accurately speaking, it's from Horizon's father; Mikawa's Lord Motonobu Matsudaira. Apparently, the older man, who is rarely home, had a tendency to mistreat his only daughter, verbally, during the only times he is back home from his lectures.

And today…

Well, today he went too far.

Such was why Toori is there now.

* * *

Together with his older sister Kimi, and best friend Tomo Asama, were visiting Horizon, as their wealthy friend claimed she had a new game to show off. Toori always hated it when she would brag about some new possession, going into detail about how valuable it was and how rare it was to find – though in the end he knew all he had to do was ask her politely and Horizon would hand it over to share.

However, before Horizon could even lead them to the living room, where she planned on unveiling his newest material possession, they heard her father calling for her; loud and angry. The embarrassed Horizon then tells them to wait in the living room, claiming she would be back in a minute.

Then came the yelling…

Then the tantrum…

Horizon never came back, and instead ran up to her room, ignoring the fact that she had guests. Her father left out the front door, heading for work.

Normally Toori would storm off to find something better to do, maybe harass Asama on her growing breasts a bit until Horizon comes back. But something in his gut told him to stick around. Something was definitely up.

Asama was the most concerned, claiming she had never seen Horizon so upset, and was unnerved at the tone her father used on her. Kimi was worried as well, though she wanted to go home, claiming maybe Horizon got on her dad's bad side – bringing up how upset Motonobu gets whenever her disappeared mother is concerned. So Kimi suggested they wait a while.

An hour passed, as they watched TV, patiently waiting.

Two hours passed, and Toori was starting to feel on-edge.

Finally, one of the Matsudaira's Automated Dolls came in and stated they should go home, as Horizon must not be feeling well. Kimi was up for the offer, though Asama suggested they wait outside, just in case, and asked the beautiful Doll to pass on the message.

Toori suddenly stood up, claiming he'd go talk to her, much to the girls' initial shock. Toori was never good at delicate matters, they believed, and they imagined he would probably break down the door and drag Horizon out, rant at her for 'being a crybaby and leaving them hanging'. After promising them (namely Asama) that he wouldn't be rough, his sister and friend walked out, while he went upstairs. There he stood now, in front of the door. He tried the handle, only to find it locked. He hated being locked out, and thought about busting the lock… but held back because a boy his size would probably break first. The longer he stood in silence, the more he could sense something was seriously wrong with Horizon. Sure, the wealthy little princess had her share of fits before, but she had never locked herself in her room for over two hours – especially when she had an opportunity to brag about something!

"Horizon? C'mon, open up, we're all worried about you," Toori stated a little impatiently, not even trying to mask his concern.

No response.

Toori shifted, rubbing his arm. "Horizon, please…" He rarely said 'please', only when he was getting desperate – and considering his instinct that something was wrong with his friend kept growing with every passing silence, he is getting pretty desperate. "...I get it if you don't wanna come out, but at least let us know you're okay?"

It is a gamble, but he knew Horizon well enough that, if someone gave her enough attention, she would give in. Maybe she would even open up the door with that sly, fox-like grin of hers, asking just how 'worried' everyone was about her, and perhaps dragging it out just to get some special attention from Toori.

"...Go away…"

That was the sole response Toori got… but one he never expected. Horizon knew him well enough to know that 'go away' was practically an invitation for the bully to barge in! Telling Toori to do something he didn't want to do was like waving a red-cape in front of a rampaging bull!

He only stood there, though. From the tone Horizon used – a quiet, scared, agonized little voice that only a small child would use in a painful moment – he could tell that breaking into the room wasn't an option. Maybe if the tone was cocky, stubborn, or snobbish, like Horizon often was, he would have barged in… but something was off about his friend.

It was almost too much to handle…

And it was all because of all the yelling they had heard from her father. About how 'pathetic' Horizon is… how he wished it was her mother who lived instead… how she'd be better off dead than have a 'spoiled brat' to mooch off his money…

Toori gave his share of insults in the past, but none that harsh.

"Horizon, listen." He said calmly, keeping close to the door. "I know you're hurt. Words like that… especially coming from your own pa… they cut deep. I know. And I know it's hard, but you can't listen to the people who put you down like that."

Still no response, but Toori continued. "I want you to know that none of those things he said were true. None of us think of you like that. You're tough and smart as hell, and very talented, and a great friend no matter what your pa says."

It wasn't like him to get in too deep, but something inside him told him Horizon needed to hear it. Sure, the girl was often snobby sometimes, both of them teaming up to cause trouble quite a bit, but she still had his share of good qualities – otherwise, none of them would hang around her. Plus, Toori and Horizon had been friends for years – consoling her would be no different than consoling Kimi, if she was this upset.

Silence lingered in the air, and finally Toori sighed, deciding to let his friend be. "Okay… I'll leave you alone, now." He said, moving away from the door. He paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "Uh… I know you need some time to yourself, or whatever… But if you need someone to talk to… you know…"

No response, and he bowed his head, turning away.

"Stay safe, okay? I hope you start feeling better soon, Horizon." He winced a little, though his inner-tough guy told him to keep it in. So his friend wouldn't come out… she wouldn't come out either, if she were that hurt… right?

He only took three steps from the door when he heard a *click*.

Pausing, he turned around, seeing the door open slightly, as Horizon slowly stepped into the door frame, head-bowed. The poor girl was shaking a great deal… and when she lifted her head, Toori tensed, seeing tears trailing out of his friend's eyes. Sure, he had seen her cry before, but only mild wincing, not a complete flood! Her face was red, too, as if she had been crying for a while, or maybe embarrassed to be seen crying by a boy – though Toori remained silent. Even though he was an oaf at times, he knew better than to poke fun at someone crying – especially since he himself was about to let a tear or two loose a moment ago.

"...I need someone to talk to," Horizon said rapidly, breathing hard, her voice choked with her sobs.

Toori paused, a bit taken-aback. Despite his comforting words a minute ago, he wasn't too experienced in consoling someone. Looking at Horizon, though… seeing her fists clenched, her tears trailing down her face, and the fact that she was hurting deeply, he couldn't just turn away.

"Okay…" he said, giving a small, reassuring smile as he patted his friend's shoulder. "I'm listening."

Horizon said nothing, only looking up at him with her sparkling, tear-filled eyes… Within a second, Toori felt something pressing against his chest, looking down and seeing the girl gripping onto his shirt, burying her face into its fabric as she screamed. The brunet was taken off-guard… this was SO not like Horizon! He remained still for a moment, worried that one of the other girls might come up and see… Horizon's grip on him distracted Toori from his thoughts, and he relaxed, wrapping his arms around his fragile, female friend. Toori shut his eyes, pulling Horizon close while rubbing her back, his hand trailing up to her head, ruffling her hair a bit as she held him close.

"It's alright, Horizon…" Gian whispered, listening as Suneo's sobs began to lighten. "We're here for ya… I'm here…"

"I-I just w-wish he would… stop," Horizon muttered, gripping the boy's shirt tighter as she spoke. "It's like… he thinks I'm a mistake… I remember him saying to me... he n-never wanted kids… but mama insisted to give birth to me... but now mama..." she kept her head rested against Toori's shoulder. "He hates me… I just know it…"

"Well… that's his problem, ain't it? At least you still got me… uh, and the others." He blushed a bit at that last part. What was it about seeing his friend so broken down that made him so sentimental? Perhaps it was just his instinct to protect, to take care of one of his friends if they were in trouble…

But it went deeper than that, he felt, but wouldn't admit even to himself. All he wanted to do was make sure his friend stops crying.

They stood in their position for a moment longer; Horizon resting her head against the boy's shoulder, while Toori himself held her tight.

Afterwards, Horizon slowly pulled away, wiping the last of her tears off her face. "Thank you, Toori…" she said sniffling a bit, though her smile had returned.

Toori flinched for a while.

Horizon looked absolutely stunning, mesmerizing, adorable, beautiful and pretty all at once for a slight moment.

Toori snapped himself back as he smiled awkwardly, keeping an arm around her. "Heh, no problem, that's what friends do, right?" he replied… then Horizon suddenly caught her boyfriend in a choke-hold, though kept a gentle grip on him. "But if you tell anyone I was crying, and you're gonna have a new reason to cry!"

Toori gasped, flailing his arms a bit. "Ack! Okay! I won't tell! I promise!"

Horizon grinned, releasing him, though kept a hand on his shoulder.

"So… feeling better? Despite your last-minute brutal behavior…''

''Yeah, I'm fine," Horizon replied.

"Good. Now let's get back to Kimi and Asama and see this game you've been yakking about already, huh?"

Horizon nodded, smiling a bit.

They eventually met up with Kimi and Asama, both still waiting outside, Asama being the most happy to see that Horizon was alright, giving the girl a quick hug, before they returned to her living room, where Horizon unveiled her new game, going on about how it hasn't been released to the rest of the Divine States yet and how she managed to get a good deal.

As usual, Toori wanted to play the game first, though offered Horizon to have a go at it before him, and Kimi sat down and watched noticed something unusual about her brother and her friend.

Things were pretty much back to normal, though at the same time, something was different. When Toori looked at Horizon, seeing that grin, it brought a certain warmth to his heart.

And perhaps, that is how Toori Aoi fell in love.

Maybe the cogs of time that stirred the events leading to Horizon's death in Remorse Way started turning on this very day.


End file.
